The Crone of Storybrooke
by happyalvin
Summary: Not everyone in Storybrooke had their memories erased by the curse, there was one who still had their memories and the power to leave Storybrooke whenever she wanted. Her reason for staying? To ensure Rumplestiltskin would suffer for taking her only child. They called her Baba Yaga. Her story? It was no happy ever after. Not until she befriended a young boy name Henry Mills.
1. Chapter 1

**_Once upon a time… Deep within the Enchanted Forest where no one dared to venture there was house on a hill that was anything but ordinary; this house according to folklore was a house of evil and within this house lurked a terrible witch who was as evil as the house itself and practiced the art of dark magic. Many brave men had apparently entered this house a long time ago and it was said that none of them had ever returned. Legend went that the witch had killed all those brave souls and had used their bones to put a fence around her house to prevent anymore unwanted visitors from crossing her threshold. The witch herself? Nobody had seen her in several decades but it was claimed that the witch was a haggard old woman over a thousand years old who was as thin as a skeleton with a face that would make a grown man cry. Her face was said to be wrinkled and covered in warts but most people talked of her eyes that were as black as her soul and her teeth that were made of sharpened iron. The witch was rumoured to be a cannibal, eating the flesh of all her victims and collecting their eyeballs, which decorated all her walls. Her name? Many weren't sure of what it had once been, the witch had many names but within the Enchanted Forest she was known as Baba Yaga._**

 _A storm was coming. Trouble was on the horizon and the thunder was already brewing, a sure sign that something whatever coming wasn't good. Not that it bothered Baba Yaga as she continued to gather her herbs, she had always enjoyed a good storm as they were rather soothing in an odd way and they always helped to clear her mind when there was something bothering her. There hadn't been a good storm in a fair while, some minor rumblings but nothing major. The trouble that was approaching was of no concern to Baba Yaga as she held no interest in what trouble the mortals in this land were getting themselves into. They could burn the seven lands to the ground and she wouldn't care because all their squabbles were over tedious matters and Baba Yaga was beyond most of that. She did not care for wars involving the ogres or the internal troubles brewing within the kingdoms, as long as these problems didn't turn up at her front door. She had moved on from the whole good versus evil conflict a fair while ago as there was no real winner, there was always going to have to ne a natural balance. Being on the side of good had only brought Baba Yaga misery and being on the side of evil had brought her pain so Baba Yaga had renounced both sides and sought only to practice her craft. Baba Yaga was content in keeping her own company, tending to her own business and being left alone. Over the last few centuries Baba Yaga had become accustomed to her own company, it was easier for her to be alone, that was she wouldn't be hurt again. Nobody could hurt you if you kept to yourself, your heart couldn't be broken if you kept it hidden away from the world and loved nothing except yourself. Baba Yaga supposed that said a lot about her and all the things she had gone through. She was as alone as she had been the day she was born, the only difference was that Baba Yaga had been through hell and back through the centuries. It was one of the downsides that came with being 'immortal' or rather defying the rules of time as she saw it. She could only ever really remember the bad times, Baba Yaga could some vaguely recall the good times in her life but there had been more sadness in her life then happiness, it was only natural that she could only really remember the worst._

 _Her memory was odd like that, Baba Yaga could remember certain things but something she had managed to forget much to her surprise. She couldn't remember the face of her parents, the sound of their voice or even if they had ever loved her. They had been gone for however many centuries now that they were only a fleeting thought in her mind every so often. The biggest thing that Baba Yaga had forgotten was her real name, Baba Yaga was not the name that she was given upon birth but rather a name she had taken during her darkest of days when she had fallen further than she had ever fallen before. The name Baba Yaga was taken with a promise, to be a better person, it was like a promise to herself. She had been using that name for so long that her real name faded away into the back of her mind and Baba Yaga eventually forgotten it. That was old age, you could never really run away from it no matter who you were. The one thing that Baba Yaga refused to let her age take was the memory of her daughter, her wonderful Freya. Not even a thousand more years of living would take away Baba Yaga's memory of her daughter. Freya was gone, taken from her and the world had almost crumbled when that had happen. A terrible storm had savaged the lands when Baba Yaga had learnt of her daughter's death and her grief had almost destroyed them all. But Baba Yaga had managed to survive and since then she had never loved again. Her daughter's memory was the only thing that kept Baba Yaga alive. Since then Baba Yaga hadn't the same. She had locked herself away from the entire land and she never ventured far from her home. Baba Yaga had given up the use of her magic for the most part. She was a shadow of her former self and for the most part she enjoyed that, things were less complicated when people didn't come searching for her because they needed her help or they wanted to kill her. Thankfully today wasn't one of those days, today had been mostly spent with Baba Yaga picking herbs to restock her supplies, everything had been peaceful for the most part until the approaching storm began to roll in._

 _Baba Yaga took no notice of it until she had a whispering in the winds. Something was wrong, something was happening… That much Baba Yaga could tell as the wind whispered softly to her that someone was in her home. If there was one thing that Baba Yaga detested most in this world it was people trespassing on her property, she didn't care that they called her 'The Hag of The Hills' or even that bizarre name Baba Yaga. Being called names was nothing new to Baba Yaga but someone violating her privacy was another thing, she had gone out of her way to ensure that home was out of the way for most people to find. Her game had a fence of bones around it to frighten to people away and for the most part nobody came close to entering her home. But someone had succeeded, someone had entered her inner sanctum. Baba Yaga could feel herself getting riled up but she didn't let her anger make her do something she would regret, she wasn't going to run home to confront the intruder. If there was one thing Baba Yaga was certain of was that the intruder wasn't going anywhere, they may have bypassed the enchantments she had put around the house but they wouldn't be able to leave the house until she returned, if she let them leave… Her home wasn't like other homes, it was special and Baba Yaga had made the house to be self sufficient, it was an extension of herself in a way. Regardless of that Baba Yaga still made her way her way home, back to the hut that she had been calling home for a fair while as quick as her feeble old body would allow her to go. Her house no grand palace but it was home. Her intruder was there waiting for her just like Baba Yaga knew they would be but they were rather tied up. Her house had done well to protect itself and Baba Yaga's female intruder was entangled with vines and Baba Yaga took the opportunity to circle the intruder who seemed to be too dressed up to be visiting her of all people._

 _"_ _I knew I would be getting a visit from you eventually Regina but I expected it to be a lot sooner and I would have thought that you would have been more respectful when it came to it. You dare to intrude in my abode? You must be stupid or have a rather serious death wish. Do you want that pretty little head of yours to join the other skulls on my fence? You must have seen it on your way in… The one made of human bones? You might have noticed that the only one pole is lacking a skull on top, I leave that empty for my next victim…" Baba Yaga began in a more than irritated tone of voice as she waved her bony hand in the direction of vines and instantly they began to wither and die, realising her captive from her binds. Baba Yaga now had a good look at her female intruder who was dressed head to toe in black, wearing the most elaborate black dress that Baba Yaga had seen in her life. It was over the top and seemed like the perfect dress for a queen or rather the Evil Queen Regina. The look on Regina's face suggested that she was surprised that Baba Yaga knew who she was and she was right to be taken back. Normally Baba Yaga didn't concern herself with any of the royal kingdoms but she had been hearing a lot whispers about Regina for a while. "Oh I know exactly who you are Regina, world had travelled far about the queen who has made quite the name for herself. You should be honoured as I don't normally consider it my business to know about the goings on in the kingdoms but I was intrigued after hearing that a certain somebody took the sleeping curse I created and used it to poison an apple to get back at her stepdaughter for being more prettier than herself. I would have never thought of that myself."_

 _"_ _Old Mother, forgive me for intruding as I did not mean to offend but I come to you to ask for your assistance." Regina began in a tepid manner and Baba Yaga let out a haughty laugh and wagged at her finger in a rather disapproving manner._

 _"_ _Don't insult me by playing the nice act, I see right through you child! I would have thought Rumplestiltskin would have taught not to waste my time! Rumour has it you were one of his pupils…"_

 _"_ _You know of Rumplestiltskin?"_

 _"_ _Of course I know that foul creature… How old do you think I really am? I've been around a lot longer than the Dark One. But that is not why you came, so we'll have to move things along as I have souls to torture and all that. So hurry up child and ask whatever it is you came to ask. Don't lie to me and pretend that you're not here for something as I tend to only get visitors when someone needs something from me or they want to kill me and you don't have the Harpe sword." Baba Yaga stated in a vague manner as she turned back round to face Regina, choosing not to expand any further as there was no need for Regina to know about her quarrel with Rumplestiltskin. It was nobody's business except her own as Baba Yaga's history with Rumplestiltskin was personal, it dated back to when the Dark One had killed her daughter Freya to gain her power of foresight. The Dark One was responsible for Baba Yaga losing her only child, he had caused the darkest of all her days and since that day she had wanted to make his suffer…_

 _"_ _I need your help with casting a spell. A very particular spell, one of your own creations." Regina began and Baba Yaga scowed as she was pretty sure she knew exactly where this was going._

 _"_ _You want to cast my Dark Curse… Of course, which is what brings you here as you need a lock of hair from those with the darkest of souls and whose soul could be darker than the one who created the curse? I've always prided myself on my ability to manipulate magic to create my own spells and curses. This particular curse is perhaps one of my favourites, something this powerful and devastating was not created over night, it took time and a good amount of my own blood, sweat and magic. It's why I made sure that a piece of my hair was a key ingredient of the recipe as even though I decided not to use the curse myself, I didn't want anyone trying to rob me of my accomplishments. It's a bit narcissistic but given the extent of that curse, I deserve to make it all about me." Baba Yaga snarled before breaking into a small cackle as she idly wondered over to her altar and picked up a knife and proceeded to cut a lock of hair off. It sat in her hand for a brief moment but once Baba Yaga turned her gaze to her piece of cut hair it disappeared in a cloud of black smoke before reappearing in Regina's hand._

 _"_ _Your not going to ask why I want to cast your curse Old Mother? Try to discourage for casting it? Or warn against what will happen?"_

 _"_ _Do I look like I care? I don't care about you in the slightest Regina, I don't give a damn about your reasons for wanting to use my dark curse. I am not your mother child, it is not my job to lecture you and warn you about what comes with casting a curse like this. Beside you won't be able to cast my curse unless you understand the full implications of it, a design flaw you could call it. I don't do anything by halves. It's why I'm the Old Mother and you are not. Now go, I'm done with you and don't come back unless you want me to take that head of yours…" Baba Yaga spat in disgust as she had no time for idiots in the slightest, it was not her job to be holding hands and wiping noses of those who wanted to use such powerful and dangerous magic. One of her names may be Old Mother but she certainly wasn't anyone's mother. At least not anymore._

 _"_ _Many thanks Old Mother." Regina replied in a grim tone before turning away and disappearing in a cloud of smoke. You could use magic to leave Baba Yaga's house but not to enter it, that was a challenge within itself that Baba had in place to stop certain unwelcomed company from dropping by for a visit. With her home no longer disturbed, Baba Yaga was left to her own devices which is how she liked it and as she idly wondered through her small home, she passed by a broken mirror and managed to catch her refracted reflection. She was hideous. Grey matted hair that was wild as the wolves, tired and wrinkled skin that was haggard beyond compare with bulging warts that would make a young child cry. Her body was all but skin and bones, her back hunched over and a permanent scowl etched on her face. She was the repulsive Hag of The Hills…_

 _Baba Yaga looked once more at her refection before batting her eyelids and watched as her haggard old appearance disappeared right before her very own eyes. The skinny and old battle axe wasn't her true appearance, it was only a façade or rather a glamour meant to misguide and deceit strangers as her true self didn't exactly look quite like someone you would describe as being the 'Hag of The Hills'. The glamour that Baba Yaga used was to help with her fearsome reputation, to help keep people away from her as it was a lot easier to scare people off and keep them away if you looked like an old witch who wouldn't bat an eyelid about eating you. Now, Baba Yaga's reflection did not show that of a repulsive and wrinkled hag but rather her true appearance of a young woman with pale skin that almost seemed translucent, almond shaped eyes and long grey hair that seemed to match The Hag of The Hills grey view on the world. The only thing that gave any indication of Baba Yaga's age was the tired blue eyes that looked back of her. Centuries old which didn't match her youthful body. Looking at her reflection Baba Yaga let out a wicked smile as things were starting to fall into place. Regina had come just like Baba Yaga knew she would, she had all the ingredients now to cast the spell and now all Baba had to do was wait and soon enough Rumplestiltskin would finally begin to suffer for what he had taken from._

* * *

There was something about castles and palaces that never seemed to sit right with Yelena, they always seemed to be associated with wealth and power but when you thought about it what real power was there living in a fancy home? It didn't really mean anything as all the nobility answered to the Kings and Queens then in turn they didn't really rule over anything, they served the populace. The whole thing was problematic and political which just ended up causing a lot more trouble then it was worth which is why Yelena was somewhat glad that she was no longer in a place where there were no more entitled royalty who thought they were better than everyone else who surrounded themselves in jewels and fine clothes whilst the people they were supposed to serve starved to death. There wasn't any of that in Storybrooke, this little town in Maine was a literally a world away from the lands in which all the inhabitants in town had come from. The only sign of their former lives living under the rule of kings and queens were the castle playground which sat on top of rather deserted piece of small land and it was this little wooden castle where Yelena was sitting in the middle of, eating an ice-cream and enjoying the rather miserable day. Twenty eight wonderful years had Yelena and everyone else had been here in Storybrooke, pretty much frozen in time and unaware that they were imprisoned in this land without magic as one of the real beauties of Yelena's curse was that everyone's memories of their former lives had been replaced with false memories of their time here in Storybooke. The only two people who remembered everything was Regina, being the one who had cast the dark curse and Yelena who had been the one to create the curse. These last twenty-eight years had been great for Yelena, in this land she wasn't known as Baba Yaga, the Hag of the Hills and people weren't constantly coming to her door because they needed something from her. This curse had been a blessing to Yelena, it had brought her the peace that she had always longed for and a life without magic, something that Yelena had been yearning for over the last century. Plus Rumplestiltskin was suffering which brought Yelena great joy as her only real reason for living was to make sure that man suffered because of the pain he had inflicted on her. In this world Rumplestiltskin had no power, his loved ones were far from his reach and what made Yelena happiest of all was that Rumplestiltskin had no idea about any of it, he was just an old man here. If Yelena had killed Rumplestiltskin then he couldn't suffer so by allowing the Dark One to live, Yelena could ensure that the man would suffer for all his days. That was the beauty of them both being immortal, Yelena didn't have to worry that she would die of old age before she was finally done with making Rumplestiltskin's life hell.

Not a day passed where Yelena didn't think of her sweet Freya and whilst the grief no longer crippled her, it didn't mean that Yelena was ready to move on with her life and forget what Rumplestiltskin had taken from her. Revenge was something that was best served with a well calculated plan, it hadn't been in Yelena's best interest to get mad and burn the lands down after Freya had died. That wouldn't have served her well, getting over emotional and acting with her heart instead of her head would have meant things had turned out another way. Yelena had out reason and logic ahead of emotion and so far it had served her well. It took a long time for Yelena to learn how to switch off her emotions, to be able shut herself of from things such as love and happiness but after losing the two people she loved most in the world, being emotionally shut off was the only way that she knew how to survive. Glancing up at the sky Yelena couldn't help but smile at the grey clouds that were hanging in the sky, it seemed like a storm was brewing and even to this day, after all these centuries she still enjoyed a good storm.

"Do you think it's going to rain? I didn't bring my umbrella and it looks like it's going to rain!"

Yelena hadn't realized that anyone else was here, she had assumed like always when she came to this playground castle that she was alone but not this time. There was a boy almost standing right in front of Yelena; a young boy with dark hair who was wearing the Storybrooke Elementary uniform and he was looking at Yelena with these hazel eyes that seemed to be looking right at her which was impossible. Nobody saw Yelena, it wasn't like she was invisible or anything but she tended to stay off the radar for the most part as the last thing she needed was Regina catching wind of her real form. Things would get messy and Yelena enjoyed living in anonymity. But people here in Storybrooke never saw her, time was frozen here and the curse had taken care of everyone's memories and they unaware that they were living in a place frozen in time. Everyday was the same to them, nothing changed and they never knew it so they would never remember seeing Yelena. There were too busy being cursed and having a constantly glassy eyed look in their face to ever see her except for this one boy. The one person in this entire town who hadn't been brought here with the curse. He was a very special little boy.

"You have time, it's not going to rain yet… But it will, probably in the next 24 hours give or take an hour or two. You see those clouds in the sky? The thin and wispy looking ones? Those are cirrus clouds and you can pretty much see them any time of the year and in the day these clouds are whiter than any other cloud and they are pretty special as their made up of icy crystals and the highest clouds you'll ever see. Cirrus clouds are one of the first signs of a warm front approaching with warm air rising over and moving over the cold air…" Yelena began attempting to explain the changing weather until she noticed the lost look on the young boy's face, it was clear to her that she had lost him. Her explanation had gone over his small head. "Basically? These clouds indicate that bad weather is coming, cirrus clouds are some of the first signs so you'll be okay for now. But I would take an umbrella with you tomorrow."

"How'd you know that?"

"I'm a bit of an amateur meteorologist, reading the weather is a bit of a hobby of mine. You could probably even call it a talent…" Yelena replied with a small but hollow laugh as saying that she could read the weather was a bit of an understatement. Yelena used to be fully capable of bending the weather to her will, manipulating it to suit her needs when she needed to. But Yelena hadn't been capable of doing that for a long time, however it didn't mean that the weather couldn't communicate with her. They may not be magic here in Storybrooke but Yelena, back in a very old life of hers used to be a servant of nature and that made her susceptible to the changes of nature around her. It was one skill that Yelena hadn't lost when the curse had brought her to Storybrooke along with everyone else. Glancing up at the sky, Yelena ignored the clouds for a moment to look at the only other thing that lurked in the sky; her two ravens. Titan and Calypso, Yelena's most trusted of all companions who saw everything that Yelena was unable to see. They were her second eyes.

"I've not seen you around before."

"Perhaps that's because I've not wanted to be seen, some of us like to live in certain anonymity." Yelena stated with a wry smile as she tucked a small piece of her dark hair behind her ear. She wasn't surprised that the young boy had never seen her before as Yelena lived a secluded life, a very isolated life which was very similar to her old life in Mist Haven. Yelena lived a modest life in a cottage that was located in the woods, it was away from prying eyes and so far off the beaten path that only those who were really experienced with the woods in Storybrooke had any chance of coming across her home. Yelena's home wasn't some kind of mansion like Regina's vast home, it was much smaller and very secluded. Most of all it's location was a welcomed sight, Yelena loved the outdoors, there was something so peaceful about living in the woods and cut off for the most part from the rest of the world. Occasionally Yelena ventured into town during the day and when Yelena did she never stayed for long. The last thing Yelena wanted was to become as popular as she used to be, if that happened she would never have a moments peace.

"I'm Henry. Henry Mills."

"Little One, I know very well who you are." Yelena quipped, an amused smile gracing her smile as there was something about the little boy right in front of her that just seemed to radiate this innate sweetness. Of course Yelena knew who Henry was, she may keep herself out of sight most of the time but even she knew of the adopted son of Regina. Everyone in Storybrooke knew that their feared Mayor Regina Mills had adopted a child ten years ago but how Henry had come to brought to Storybrooke was something that even Yelena didn't know. Deep magic had brought this curse to life, it was very powerful magic that had made this whole town and the curse to reality and Storybrooke wasn't somewhere that you could find on a map. It was hidden, carefully tucked away where no one could possibly find it. At least that was the way that it was supposed to be but over the last twenty eight years, things had happened that had taken Yelena by surprise. There had been several unwanted visitors who had somehow managed to make their way past the barrier that protected Storybrooke from the outside world and Yelena always made it her personal business to find out who those people were. That included little Henry Mills. He had appeared under this little cloud of smoke and unlike previous visitors, the boy was still here and he was different from most people here. Something about Henry was different, there was this air about him that reminded Yelena of her Freya. There was something special about this little boy.

"What about you? What's your name?" Henry questioned.

"I know that it's a bit late to be saying this but didn't your mother ever tell you not to speak to strangers? I'm pretty sure that's one of the things that every parent tells their children along with not going into houses made out of candy or eating people's bowls of porridge." Yelena replied answering the young Mr. Mills question by responding with another question as the subject of her name was something that wasn't exactly quite that simple. It was complicated as Yelena's name wasn't the one that she was born with and her previous name of Baba Yaga wasn't her original name either. Yelena's real name? It was something that she had used from the day that she was born until the day that her world had fallen apart and after that Yelena took up the name Baba Yaga, she had used that name for centuries until the curse had brought her here. Upon arriving in Storybrooke she had taken the name of Yelena Markarova, a new name to separate her from her life with magic. Yelena hoped that her response would move the subject conversation on but it wasn't that easy. Little Henry Mills was looking at her with those puppy eyes with such a hopeful look in his eyes that Yelena felt herself unable to say no. "I have many names, I've been called different names by may over the years but you may call me Yelena."

"Hi Yelena!"

"Hello Henry." Yelena replied with a small smile, it had been forever since she had been in the company of a child and having this idle conversation with the young man next to her made Yelena miss her daughter fiercely. She missed being a mom. Yelena missed having something that belonged, this little creature who was full of hope and depended on her for everything. The world had been filled full of rainbows and sunshine when Freya had been alive, since losing her daughter Yelena's world had just been filled with cold darkness. Henry Mills was a little reminder of what Yelena missed most about her life. Yelena didn't miss her magic, she just missed her dear sweet daughter and she would have traded all her power to be reunited with her daughter. But Yelena couldn't bring back her daughter, there was were steep prices for using magic that dark and she had promised herself that she would never use that kind of dark and evil magic again. Once was enough and to this day Yelena was living with those consequences.

"Can I ask you something Yelena?"

"We've only just met Mr. Mills but go ahead, I'll answer as best as I can." Yelena quietly quipped in response knowing that the young boy could fully well hear her. For Yelena it was nice to be having a conversation with another human again, talking to someone who could respond back with actual words. It was a luxury that Yelena didn't know that she had been missing all these years.

"What do you think about fairy tales?" Henry asked and to anyone else it would have sounded like an innocent question but Yelena knew better than that. She knew that the so-called fairy tales in this world were really just watered down versions of real events that had happened back in her world. This wasn't the question that Yelena had been expecting Henry to ask her, she was expecting him to ask her why she had grey air. Something along the lines of Yelena being 'too young' to have grey hair or why she was here at a children's playground of all people. But no, Henry hadn't asked wither of those questions. The boy had asked the question that Yelena had never expected to ask. Yelena couldn't help but look at Henry, somewhat puzzled as to why he would ask her such a random question until she spotted it; the leather bound book with the words 'Once Upon A Time' stamped across the front. Yelena knew that book, she had seen it many times before and had dealing with the person who had created it. How the hell did that book get here? How the hell did it end up in this boys possession? Those were all questions that were running through Yelena's mind but she knew she couldn't ask Henry. The boy would get suspicious and she couldn't have that. She needed to tread carefully.

"Fairy tales, huh? Well a lot of people think that they are simply made up stories that were created for parents to teach their children morals. Some think that they teach us that if we are pure of heart then we overcome any adversity that comes our way. Most believe that fairy tales teach us right from wrong and that they are just stories to entertain us. But then there are those who believe that fairy tales aren't simply stories but real accounts of people and events that have happened. It's been said that over time certain parts of these stories have been altered, variations of these accounts have appeared in different parts of the world but the core of the story always remains the same. I myself tend to lean the latter…"

"You believe that fairy tales are real too?" Henry gasped in amazement, his dark eyes lighting up with excitement and Yelena was smiled. All children believe in fairy tales, what little girl didn't dream of being a princess? What boy didn't want to be a handsome knight and battle the evil dragon and save the day? If only he knew the truth, Yelena couldn't help but wonder to herself.

"Of course, all stories regardless of where they come from are all based on fragments of the truth. It's merely up to us to choose if we want to believe in them." Yelena stated being as downright truthfully honest as she had ever known herself to be, she needed to be careful as she would probably tell little Henry Mills that she was probably in that book of his, all he had to do was look for the ugly and disfigured witch known as Baba Yaga. Naturally Henry would never believe that given her true form was not the Baba Yaga people had known her to be. People only cared about appearances, there was no way that they would believe that Yelena who looked very much younger than all her years was the fearsome hag of the hills. Nobody would be so terrified of her that they wouldn't come within 100 miles of her without a death wish. So Yelena at the time had to come up with something, a disguise. Her appearance as 'Baba Yaga' was the result of a simple spell; a glamour to make herself appear as that fearsome raggedy old woman with iron teeth so people would keep their distance.

"Most people wouldn't say that." Henry couldn't help but point out.

"I'm not most people." Yelena retorted with a small scoff as she pushed a stray piece of hair out of face, tucking it behind her ear before turning her attention to the child beside her. "Which brings me to a question I have for you Mr. Mills, why are you talking to an old hag like myself about something like fairy talks? Shouldn't you be running off with your friends somewhere and having fun? I'm hardly a good companion for anyone."

"I-I don't really have any…" Henry began trailing off before he could finish his sentence but it was took late as Yelena knew what he would have said. He was going say that he didn't have any friends and now the smile was gone from Henry's face and he just looked around awkwardly, trying his hardest to not meet Yelena's eyes. If Yelena had a heart anymore it surely would have broken in this very moment as she knew that no child should feel like this. No child should feel lost and isolated from everyone around them. Yelena couldn't bare to see the young boy look so sad anymore so she bent down so that she was on equal footing with Henry.

"It's okay, it's nothing to be ashamed of as I understand Henry. I perfectly understand how it feels, I know what it's like to be different, I understand what it's like to be alone and the longing to be accepted by those around you because the loneliness is unbearable. But it's okay Little One, you would be surprised in how much strength you can find in loneliness." Yelena assured Henry as this was something that she was very much experienced in, losing Freya had almost destroyed her. Yelena had almost destroyed several lands as the idea of being without her child almost killed her but she managed to survive. The loneliness over the centuries tested her almost every day but Yelena wouldn't let it beat her, she allowed it to motivate her into completing her mission.

"I don't understand." Henry wearily replied furrowing his brows ever so slightly and Yelena fought back a smirk.

"You will, one day."


	2. Chapter 2

_The cherry blossoms were falling all around and Baba Yaga outstretched her hand and waited for the blossoms to fall into her hand. This beautiful spring storm was disturbing her heart but also filling her heart with so much joy as she stood under the lone cherry blossom tree that she had planted in memory of her beloved Edvard. There wasn't a day that she didn't miss Edvard, he had been the great love of her life and their time together wasn't supposed to have ended so shortly. He had never got the chance to meet their very much anticipated baby girl. Every year Baba Yaga and Freya came to watch the cherry blossoms falls to make the anniversary of his death. It had just gone eight years since Edvard's passing and the ache in Baba Yaga's heart hadn't completely healed but the arrival of Freya had made the pain bearable. The memory of Edvard's death and the darkness that came aft r it still haunted Baba Yaga as it had devastating consequences not only for her but also for her unborn daughter at the time and they were both still dealing with the fallout on a daily basis. Baba Yaga's gaze turned away from the cherry blossoms and over to her daughter who wasn't enjoying them like she usually was. Instead Freya was idly looking down to the ground, her face hidden away by her long hair, it was a burnt red in colour and often reminded Baba Yaga of the sunset. Just like Edvard's hair often reminded Baba Yaga of the evening sun. There were many things about Freya that resembled Edvard, she was her father's daughter in so many ways but at the same time, her own person. She was the most curious creature, always so inquisitive and wanting to go off and explore the world on her own but yet Freya was far off from her happy and cheerful self. From where she stood Baba Yaga could all but feel her daughter radiate pain, Freya was feeling so overwhelmingly sad that Baba Yaga almost felt like she could reach out and touch her child's sadness._

 _Something was wrong and immediately Baba Yaga made her way over to her daughter and knelt in front of her. Extending out her hand, Baba Yaga reached forward and pushed back Freya's hair so she could properly look at her daughter. To Baba, her daughter was more precious to her than life itself but even after all these years it broke Baba Yaga's heart to see the stitching adorned on her daughter's face that marred her appearance as Baba Yaga knew that she was the reasons behind her daughter looking this way. It was because of something that Baba had done a few years ago that had resulted in Freya being born not like most children, it had been a rather difficult birth with great cost to Freya. For birth she was different from other babies, her entire life Freya hadn't been normal and she didn't look like any of the other children. Her eyes hadn't been where they were supposed to be when she was born, forcing the area where they should have been to be stitched over. The situation with Freya's eyes were unique, that's how Baba Yaga liked to look at the situation as her daughter did have eyes, a dazzling pair of bright blue eyes, with one eye in each of her palms and Freya's eyes were perhaps the most powerful of them all. As from birth Freya had been gifted with the power to see the future and it a powerful gift._

 _"Little Butterfly, what's wrong? Have you seen something?" Baba Yaga quietly questioned as whilst her daughter had a tremendous gift, she was well aware of the huge burden it placed on her child. Freya saw everything; what had passed, what would pass and what had the potential to come to happen. There was no real limit to what Freya's gift allowed her to see, it never stopped. For Freya it was like a never ending puzzle, there was always another piece for her to find no matter what she did. Baba Yaga tried to help Freya deal with her gift as best she could but there was only so much she could do, she did not have the power to remove the ability even if she wanted to._

 _"Mama, am I pretty?" Freya asked and Baba Yaga smiled and took her daughter's hands in her own and smiled, well aware that Freya could still see her. It always amazed Baba that her daughter's ability to see the world around her was not limited just to her eyes._

 _"Of course, you are the most beautiful girl in all the kingdoms and you can trust mama on that as I have travelled across many lands in my time. There is no one anywhere who can rival you my dearest daughter. Mama wishes that she could be as beautiful as you are Freya but you take after your dear papa and I cannot complain about that. He was a very handsome man but you Freya are even more beautiful than he was. You are as beautiful as the blazing morning sun and you fill my life with such incredible light. My little butterfly is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside."_

 _"Then why don't I look like all the other children? Why I am a different?" Freya questioned and in that moment Baba Yaga's heart broke as she knew that this day would one day come. The day that Freya would ask her why she was different and Baba Yaga would have to tell her daughter the truth about her appearance. Baba knew that this had had been fast approaching, it was unavoidable and she had to tell Freya the truth, her daughter deserved it but it didn't mean Baba didn't wish to protect her daughter from it for just a little while longer._

 _"I'm sorry, this is all my fault Freya… Before I met your papa I was all alone in the world, I carried so much loneliness in my heart and nobody understood me. I had always been alone, with no family of my own. All I had was my magic but no one understood me, they just saw me as a witch and they would be cruel because they thought I was an evil witch. I only sought to protect myself and tend to my craft. My heart was filled with loneliness which slowly began to turn into darkness and I thought I would be alone forever and then I met Edvard, your dear papa and I knew love for the first time in my life. He warm and gentle, always laughing at something and he managed to make his way into my heart and cast out all the darkness. We were married the summer after we had met and not long after, I was with child. I was pregnant with you… I had never been so happy in my life but then everything changed. Your papa was killed in a mining accident and hearing about his death drove me to the brink of despair. The idea of living without him was too much for me to bare, I couldn't lose him. I refused to live a life without him and so in the midst of all my grief and despair, I tried to bring him back… But there is a price with magic Little Butterfly, there are rules and bringing someone back from death is unthinkable, let alone doable. It cannot be done but I was so heartbroken that I was willing to do whatever it took and I spent my days trying to find ways to bring your papa back. I had thought I had found a way but it came at a great cost and it forced me to call upon several types of both light and dark magic and giving up a piece of my soul. The spell I had created to bring back my dear Edvard came from within the darkest depths of myself and I didn't understand the consequences when I cast it. What I did was unforgivable and I had punished the boundaries of magic to a breaking point and I could not allow to escape unpunished for what I had tried to do. Or so I thought but I was not the one to pay the price for what I had done, the person who would have to pay that price was to be my unborn daughter."_

 _"The great storm the day I was born?" Freya questioned and Baba Yaga slowly nodded her head. The day that Freya had been born, a terrible storm had raged over the lands and it almost destroyed everything. The constant downpour of rain was causing the rivers to flood, strong winds were howling throughout the day and night, the sky was full of dark clouds that were filled with rumbles of thunder. Several villages had been destroyed as a result and by the end of her storm, Baba Yaga had given birth to the daughter that was standing in front of her._

 _"Yes. It was an omen of what was going to happen… I am so sorry my Freya, I did not know what would have happen. I just wanted the three of us to be together like we should have been. I wanted us to be a family. I was so scared of losing what I had that I did not think of what would have happened. I would not have cast that spell if I knew you would be punished for my mistake. If I could change it all then I would, you must believe me. My dear Freya, my sweet daughter… You are my one and only daughter, I would do anything to protect you, to make you happy. You are my favourite thing in all the lands and the reason that I continue to live." Baba Yaga quietly replied and Freya said nothing at first, she just stood there in silence for a few moments before outstretching her left hand and gentle stroking her mother's face._

 _"The mother of one, the mother of all… The one who loves like no other will bring beauty and destruction to all. She, who carries time on her hands and the blood of the gods will bring the darkness across the lands and defend the truest believer from those who seek to cause him harm."_

* * *

Over the last twenty-eight years Yelena had been living in Storybrooke in relative peace, knowing that the dark curse that she had created was playing out just like it intended. It had long ago stopped bothering Yelena that every day in Storybrooke was the same, her life had been rather open ended since she had lost Freya and she was surrounded by others who only had day to day misery and no happy ending like herself. It had long ago stopped bothering Yelena that every day in Storybrooke was the same, her life had been rather open ended since she had lost Freya and she was surrounded by others who only had day to day misery and no happy ending like herself. There was a part of Yelena that enjoyed being able to watch her curse play out in front of her, seeing the devastating effects of a curse that she had poured her blood, sweat and tears amongst othering things into creating. But the reason why Yelena enjoyed watching the inhabitants was because of how normal everything here was in Storybrooke. There was no magic, no wars between the kingdoms and no magical creatures running lose – well Yelena's Jabberwocky was somewhere safe where it couldn't hurt anybody along with her house. Things here were calm and that was something that Yelena had never really known before in her life, for as long as she could remember her life had always been centred around magic. It had been responsible for some of the best moments in Yelena's life but it had also been the cause of some of her darkest days. It was basically safe to say that Yelena had a complicated relationship with magic, so being free to live a life without having to use magic for the last twenty eight years had brought the first taste of normalcy that she had ever experienced. Of course, Yelena still had her own magic as she was immune from the effects of her curse but she had no real need to use it. Here in Storybrooke, Yelena was allowed to be a normal person for the first time in her life. No longer, did she require a glamour for her appearance to fit her title of Hag of The Hills.

After the loss of Freya, Yelena had shut herself off from the rest of the world but now she was starting to venture out into the community. For most of the duration of the curse, Yelena had lived in anonymity as prior to Regina casting the curse, nobody knew her true identity and that was the way that she liked it. But now? Yelena was starting to venture out in Storybrooke, she was out in the open and slowly starting to insert herself as nobody knew who she was, not even Regina knew that the one called Yelena Makarova, a nobody who lived in her town was really Baba Yaga. However, it wasn't a sense of loneliness that was drawing Yelena out into the open. No, it was something else. For the first time in twenty eight years time was moving in Storybrooke. Normally time was something that Yelena never worried about, as for her time was eternal as she had the blood of Chronos in her veins. She literally had all the time in the world and then some. She was the ageless crone who was living in a frozen town that could not be found on any map. Yet time had started to move in Storybrooke, the clocks were no longer frozen and the inhabitants of this town were no longer stuck in a continuous loop, unaware of what was happening to them. Yelena knew there was only one reason why time would resume here in Storybrooke; the arrival of the one who would break her dark curse.

Yelena wasn't naïve, she knew that one day this day would come as all magic came with a price and she would have never been able to create such a curse without there being a way to break it. Something so dark could not exist without some way of good to prevail over it, some way to create balance within the natural order. However, that didn't mean that she was going to stand by and watch as Rumplestiltskin could one day get a happy ending, Yelena was committed to making the Dark One suffer for all the pain that he had inflicted on so many others including herself. Rumplestiltskin or Mr. Gold as he was known here in Storybrooke was somewhat as shadow of his true self as here he had no magic, sure he had status and wealth but he lacked the power that he once had. That, in itself brought a small measure of comfort to Yelena although there was no amount of suffering that she inflicted on the Dark One would never bring back her sweet daughter. No matter what happened with this curse, Yelena would make sure that Rumplestiltskin would spend the rest of his life being as miserable as she was.

As she sat in a booth in Granny's Diner, a local eating establishment that many of the inhabitants of Storybrooke visited on a daily basis, Yelena took a sip of her black coffee and watched everyone in the diner go about their daily business. She was envious of how easy and simple their lives were as she wasn't fortunate to suffer the same fate as they did. But this was the way things were meant to be, Yelena had to remind herself and as she did, she caught sight of a young woman who stood out from the moment she walked into the diner. Emma Swan. The one who had the power to break the big bad curse. Yelena knew who Emma was from the moment she had seen here and it wasn't because of the article about her in the paper. No, Yelena knew the face of everyone here in Storybrooke and she had never seen Emma before but she had known that one day, a young woman names Emma who was a product of true love would one day be coming to Storybrooke to break her curse. She was a vision of course, hair of sunshine gold and blue eyes that seemed to hold so much depth for someone so young. The saviour reminded Yelena so much of her parents, the fair Snow White and her Prince Charming.

"You can sit here if you like Swan, there's more than enough space in this booth for the two of us." Yelena began, addressing Emma from where she awkwardly stood in the entrance way of Granny's, looking for somewhere to sit. The place was a little busy today and judging by the looks that she was receiving, it was clear that everyone else had seen the story in the paper and weren't impressed. Yelena watched as 'The Saviour' wearily eyes her up, unsure of accepting an offer from somebody she didn't know. It was natural of course, the world outside Storybrooke wasn't exactly friendly from what Yelena understood. But none the less, Yelena offered the young woman a friendly smile, to indicate that she didn't bite. Despite the popular belief, the Hag of the Hills wasn't a cannibal, but she never denied it in an effort to maintain her fearsome image.

It took a while but eventually Emma caved and shuffled over to the booth where Yelena was sitting and allowed herself to sit down.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it, I understand what it's like to be an outsider in this town and be forced to put up with awkward silences and strange looks whenever you walk into a room. It's kind of my party trick…" Yelena response before quietly chuckling to herself at the inside joke that she had made at her own expense as she was the ultimate outsider. She was well aware that she would never fit into this town, whilst Yelena looked normal like the rest of them and had a house, a car and nice clothes to wear, she wasn't one of them. Yelena was different in more ways than one and the great evil that had brought them all here. No matter how much she tried to be normal, no matter what her name was in this town, Yelena Makarova was always going to be Baba Yaga and the bringer of destruction, just like Freya had foretold.

"Oh yeah? Did you happen to destroy a historical sign as well?" Emma retorted and Yelena couldn't help but smirk in response, she had been expecting the saviour to be all bright and shiny and full of hope. But apparently Emma Swan hadn't got that message. She had a quick tongue and seemed to be full of distrust and snarkiness. It was a bit of an understatement to say that Yelena hadn't been expecting the blonde haired woman sitting in front of her to be the one with the power to break the curse. But the prophecy had foretold the arrival of the one with the power to save everyone, returning on her twenty-eighth birthday and Emma Swan was the only person who fit that description. Yelena was going to have to keep a close eye on Emma but already she could feel a change within the air. Things around here were already starting to change and Yelena was sure that time resuming in Storybrooke was only one of the many changes that were to come.

"I'm more of dropping a house on top of a witch kind of gal, if you know what I mean. But I'm sure that I can always pick up some petty vandalism in my spare time if I ever get bored." Yelena announced with an offhanded wave of her hand and she watched as Emma awkwardly looked around to see that she was still drawing a lot of attention to herself. "Don't mind everyone else here in town, for a bunch of small town folks they aren't bad people from what I've seen, it's just that the Evil Queen known as the Mayor tends to rule over this town with an iron fist. In Regina's mind, this her world and we just all live in it, so don't be surprised if she tries to ruin your life. She's all about making everyone as miserable as she is…"

"You know Regina?"

"Who doesn't? Her and that ego are hard to miss but I wouldn't worry about her." Yelena admitted after a moment as even though she wasn't on quite friendly terms with Regina and had no idea how the woman took her coffee, she was well aware that the young woman in front of her had the power to stop whatever it was that could be coming her way, now that she had earned the wrath of Regina. This curse had been made to be broken, there was no way that Yelena would have been able to create this curse without there being ways to break it. Something so dark could not be allowed to exist without a way for good to prevail over it. So Yelena knew that if anyone had anything to worry about then it was Regina and perhaps herself as it was going to be a lot harder for her to keep a tight grip over the Dark One if and when he got his magic back. But Yelena knew she had nothing to worry about as she had plans set in place for when that day came. Rumplestiltskin had taken her child away from her and Yelena had spent the last few decades making sure that the Dark One would never see his son again and curse or no curse, she wasn't going to let anything change that.

"You gonna tell me that Regina is harmless?" Emma questioned and Yelena couldn't but let out a snort in amusement as that was a funny question, that was like saying the Black Mamba was just a snake. Saying Regina was harmless was quite the understatement and it was clear that Emma had no idea of the forces that she was dealing with but to be fair that wasn't her fault, it had been Yelena along with Regina's fault that she was unaware of what was really going on here.

"Only an idiot would tell you something like that, and I am no such thing… Bitter and cranky maybe but certainly not stupid." Yelena retorted as she ildy fiddled with a stand of her hair before realizing that she had completely forgone all of her manners. She may be a hag but even she had been taught some manners, however many hundreds of years ago that might have been and Yelena deemed it rather rude of herself, not to have exchanged introductions with the saviour who the prophecy said would save them all. Yelena was certain that she was far too gone to be saved but that didn't mean she was interested in sitting back and enjoying the ride as this all unfolded right before her very eyes. "I'm Yelena by the way, Yelena Makarova.

"Emma Swan."

"Oh, I know who you are Emma and I didn't need a newspaper to tell me all about you. Word got round town very quickly that Little Henry Mills had brought his birth mother here to Storybrooke. I heard about your arrival before Sidney Glass had time to print that trash he calls a newspaper." Yelena casually lied, the lie seemingly rolling off her tongue without her even having to come up with some kind of story. Lies were a huge part of who Yelena was and who she had always been, she was always telling some kind of lie and if anything she was more comfortable with deceit that she was with the truth. Yelena wasn't even sure she could even tell the truth anymore, all the lies that she spun had made her into the person she was today. The lies had made Baba Yaga, it was those same lies that had brought Yelena Makarova into existence and allowed her to live the life she had here in Storybrooke.

"Yeah… He was kind of the last person I was ever expecting to see and I never dreamed that I would end up getting arrested in a town called Storybrooke of all places after I was forced to bring Henry back here." Emma admitted and Yelena let out a genuine laugh as that little Henry Mills was quite a character. He kind of reminded Yelena of Freya in a way, in the regards of how sweet and curious he was and had such a funny character about him despite being so young.

"Children can be funny like that, they have this unexpected way of turning your entire life upside down from the moment their born without even realising it."

"Do you have kids?"

Yelena frowned momentarily as that wasn't something she had never been asked before, as the notion that the Old Mother, Baba Yaga had children of her own was rather inconceivable as the fearsome Hag of The Hills wasn't exactly the motherly type. Some had known of Freya and her abilities as a Seer but no one had ever thought to question her parentage. There was only one person who had known that Baba Yaga had been the mother of the Seer and that was the Blue Fairy but she was in no position to be telling anyone anything at the moment. Yelena wasn't sure how she was supposed to answer that question, was she supposed to say no? Since her only child was dead and had been for a very long time. Or she was meant to reply yes even though Freya was no longer with her? There wasn't really a right way for Yelena to answer that question. There was no real etiquette to this sort of thing and Yelena didn't know if she could even still call herself a mother. Her child was dead and there wasn't a title that went with that. Orphans was what you called children who had no parents, a widow was someone who had their partner. There was no special title for someone who had lost a child.

"I did… I had a daughter, a very long time ago." Yelena finally allowed herself to admit before proceeding to take a small sip of her coffee and she carefully watched Emma and the grim expression that had appeared on her face when she realised what the response to her question had meant.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"So am I, the world got a little less brighter when I lost Freya but I know that she's found peace and we had an entire lifetime together. Things weren't always easy but I got to watch my only daughter grown before my very eyes and become a beautiful young woman. It wasn't nearly enough time but I treasure every single minute I spent with her." Yelena admitted, her heart aching ever so slightly for her daughter as there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do to be able to hug her Freya again or have one last conversation with her sweet child. The one thing that had always stuck with Yelena was Freya's words to her after she had this vision as a child. _The mother of one, the mother of all… The one who loves like no other will bring beauty and destruction to all. She, who carries time on her hands and the blood of the gods will bring the darkness across the lands and defend the truest believer from those who seek to cause him harm._

"Young woman?" Emma asked, her brows furrowing together ever so slightly at what Yelena said about watching her own daughter become a young woman. It didn't make any sense in the slightest. Yelena understood the confusion as she didn't look old enough to have a daughter who she described as being a young woman, she barely looked old enough to be able to drink legally. It was the joys of having the blood of the god of time in her veins and having immortality on her side. The downside? The loneliness that came with being able to live forever without the people who had meant the most to her. But Yelena wouldn't be sad right now, she would not drown in misery in front of the saviour as she had plans for the future which would require the assistance of the young woman sitting across from her. So Yelena forced herself to smile for Freya's sake.

"Don't underestimate my appearance Emma, I'm a lot older than I look and you'll discover there's more to me than what meets the eyes. But about your Regina problem, I may be able to be of some assistance…"


End file.
